


Peter Parker's No Good Very Bad Yom Kippur

by wannabe_someone



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
Genre: Canon Compliant, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Jewish Peter Parker, author's a good little jewish girl, no beta we die like men, sorry for the random crap
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-16
Updated: 2019-06-16
Packaged: 2020-05-13 03:47:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,650
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19243201
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wannabe_someone/pseuds/wannabe_someone
Summary: It's Yom Kippur, Peter's trying to fast, his friends and family try to talk him out of it





	Peter Parker's No Good Very Bad Yom Kippur

**Author's Note:**

> This doesn't really need a trigger warning for like an eating disorder or anything, it's just for religious reasons, but if characters refusing to eat will trigger something don't read this take care of ur mental health pls

The Parkers’ weren’t originally Jewish. Well, sure, Uncle Ben was, but May Parker? Not so much. Sure, her family was religious, but after college and some independence, she finally had room to truly express herself, and realized, in the end, that she was more of an atheist. When Peter moved in, though, he and Ben would go to temple, at least for the High Holidays. They had a mezuzah, kept kosher, but only for Passover, and celebrated Hannukah. Peter went to religious school and had his Bar Mitzvah.   
May on her own wasn’t religious. For the first few years after Ben’s death, both Peter and May avoided religion, the tallit buried, the mezuzah and Bar Mitzvah photos kept in a box after they moved to a new apartment.   
However, after the Decimation, everything changed. Religion, and religious centers weren’t just about prayers, or whether you believed in one god or many others, or none at all. It became a place for communities to heal. Support groups were held, new bonds were made, new families created and broken. That’s why, during those 5 years without Peter, May converted. She officially became a Jew, not just in honor of those she’d lost, but because of the community, and because in those horrible years, she needed something to believe in.  
When Peter came back, the same thing happened. Religion became a way for him to honor those he’d lost, to finally try to heal. It had started because of the therapist Pepper had paid for. “None of us want you to become more of a small version of Tony than you already are!” (Just mentioning his former idol had won the argument for his 2 mom’s), but he’d stayed for the sense of community he had. And in the end, wasn’t going out as Spider-Man one of the greatest acts of tikkun olam there is? (Ben would have agreed. He always thought that if you could help other people, and the world, a person should take it.)   
Certain parts of the religion weren’t always the greatest idea, and everyone tried to talk Peter out of this particular one. Spider-Kid metabolisms and fasting never work well together. However, Peter was one of the most stubborn people around, on the same level as the famous Tony Stark, and second only to the infamous Michelle Jones. And almost nobody could talk him out of this.  
“I’ll be fine, Aunt May, stop worrying about me!” Peter’s voice came in from his bedroom. Aunt May sighed. She knew if she let her nephew fast, the day would end horribly. The only positive was that she had anticipated this, and had a plan for when this happened. She texted the group chat Pepper had set up. This particular group chat was for Peter’s family and close friends, named The Peter Parker Protection Squad. In it was Ned, MJ, Pepper, and May. She knew she only had one more thing she could do to prevent him, then she would hand it over to the rest of the Protection Squad.  
Peter had just stepped out of his room, fully dressed in slacks, a light blue button down shirt, dress shoes, and he was carrying his tie.  
“Hey, Aunt May? Can you help me tie this?”  
“Of course.”  
After she helped Peter with his tie, she said “Uncle Ben would be so proud of you today. I hope you know that.” It was a cheap, ineffective trick that Peter saw right through.  
Peter scowled. He said, sounding irritated, “I know what you’re doing, so stop. I’m fasting to honor his memory, nothing else. I’ll be fine Aunt May, trust me.”  
“So, we’re leaving now?”  
Peter didn’t respond, just walked out the door. Aunt May fished her phone out of her purse. At least Peter having left made one thing easier. She fired off a text to the group chat, telling them that Peter still wasn’t going to give up. She then walked out the door, right when a reply was sent to the chat.

MJ: We’re on this  
Ned: wait we are  
MJ: Ofc loser let’s go

The first texts make it to Peter’s phone by the time they get to the temple and are finding their seats. Peter and May had barely made it on time, but the service hadn’t started yet. Therefore, Peter hadn’t completely turned off his phone, not that it would matter. MJ, Ned, Pepper, May, and formerly Tony Stark’s texts could always go through. When he turned on his phone though, Peter was expecting his streaks, not this:

Ned(GITC): look u sure u ok with fasting i get its for uncle ben but u dont have to do this i get that u think u can deal but it could hurt u man  
Ned(GITC): what if queens needs its friendly neighborhood spiderman

Peter rolled his eyes. He didn’t understand why everyone thought he couldn’t do this. He’d been through much worse. He was Spider-Man, remember? He could handle a single day with no food. He’d already bent the rules anyway, snacking right until he went to sleep. He wasn’t already getting lightheaded because of not eating, right?

Peterparkour: im fine ned, dont worry about me  
Peterparkour: and if queens needs me i can still go out as spiderman

In his English class, Ned started getting worried. He glanced at the clock. There was still about 10 minutes left in the period, but as Peter’s guy in the chair, he felt like he needed to do something. He carefully extracted his phone from his pocket, looking up to see if his teacher was looking. Since they weren’t, he sent a text to the group chat.

Ned(GITC): HE DIDNT GIVE UP   
Ned(GITC): HELP!!!!!

Right when he looked up from the phone, his teacher was leaning over him, their resonant voice saying the the 9 fateful words.  
“What are you doing on your phone, Mr. Leeds?”  
Ned started sweating, feeling stressed out. Under pressure, he blurted out, “Porn?” The entire class started laughing, and their teacher was too annoyed by that to do anything besides getting the class to settle down. Thankfully, he missed the next text alert from Ned’s phone.

MJ: I’m on it

Next thing Peter knew was his phone alerting him. He was immediately on high alert, waiting to hear about some crime that needed Spider-Man. So he wasn’t expecting a carefully crafted argument by MJ.

MJ: You do realise there’s an exception for if it will actually cause you harm  
MJ: Even the rest of us, by the end, will sometimes have problems with regulating things like body heat  
MJ: You’re going to hurt yourself doing this parker give up

Peter was done. He was done with everyone ordering him around, with telling him what he could and couldn’t do. His text to MJ was simple, just a single emoji.

Peterparkour: (a/n this was supposed to be a middle finger emoji, ao3 wouldn't let me) 

Peter Parker Protection Squad

MJ: He’s not giving up  
Thebosslady: I’ll go with the nuclear option.

By closer to the end of the service, Peter got a call. A real actual call from Pepper. Even though he was pissed at all of his friends and family, he still answered. “Hello?”  
“Peter, honey, I know nothing we’re going to say will change your mind. Tony…” At the mention of their former husband/mentor their breaths stopped for a second. That loss was still very rough, and very real. “Tony wouldn’t want anyone, especially you, doing something like this. If you can get to a bathroom or somewhere private, I have a video for you.”  
Peter didn’t know why he was doing this. This entire time, he’d done nothing but infuriate his friends and family. He was getting cold, though, and lightheaded, and tired. He still went into the bathroom right when the video sent, and once he opened it, he saw a hologram of Tony, bathing the entire cubicle with a soft, warm blue light like the arc reactor.  
“Hey, Underoos.”  
At those first few words, Peter’s eyes started to fill with tears. He still watched, and still listened in spite of that.  
“I told Pep to give this to you when you were doing something stupid to prove to yourself that people would be proud of you. I don’t care what it is that you’re doing, but if it could hurt you, or if it’s not in that grey area, I will haul my spirit out of wherever the hell it is and find you or your unfairly attractive aunt, or whoever’s in charge to keep you from doing that. And Pete… I want you to know that no matter what, I’m proud of you. Just not if its drugs, or alcohol, or any of my bad habits, and even then, I wish I could be there to help you through it.”  
Peter was crying, full on sobbing, really. And he realised suddenly that he didn’t need to do anything like this to make his father figures proud. They would be fine with him as he was, just helping people and trying to move on after the tragedies.  
He shakily pulled himself up from where he was sitting and returned to his seat with Aunt May. When he got there, noticing his tear stained eyes, she pulled the food she had kept in her purse for him out. Peter ate it in seconds.  
And that night, at break fast, he smiled while eating his weight in bagels with lox with his new family; his aunt, Pepper, Morgan, Happy, Ned, and MJ, while finally realizing that everything he had here with him: his friends, his life, this new family, would be enough. He could build Legos with Ned, go out as Spider-Man, eat takeout Thai with Aunt May, change the world with MJ, and babysit Morgan. Forever.

**Author's Note:**

> If ur jewish, and observant on yom kippur, you'll go for pretty much 24 hours w/o food or water unless medically nessecary or if ur putting ur health at risk for some reason, so like if you need to take a medication you can or whatever  
> also tikkun olam means healing the world  
> also if any of u @ me for being jewish ima yeet over to the comments and be offended at you


End file.
